Walking still an uneven affair along Jl. Thamrin

Leony Aurora, Jakarta

A walk in Jakarta is no walk in the park. Under scorching sun and suffocating haze, pedestrians invariably end up walking along the road because the sidewalks -- if there are any -- are either small, full of potholes, electricity poles or vendors, or a combination of all the above.

But a stroll in front of Nikko Hotel on Jl. Thamrin, Central Jakarta, is well worthwhile. The sidewalk is five-meters wide and dotted with palm trees.

Unfortunately, when The Jakarta Post passed the hotel on Wednesday, a few meters after the hotel the sidewalk narrowed again to its original width of 1.5 meters to 2.5 meters, although parts already had a new design of red concrete slabs bordered by gray square stones.

Other parts are already being excavated or are still left untouched.

The reconstruction and widening of sidewalks on Jl. Thamrin is part of the city administration's efforts to provide safe walkways for pedestrians. The City Parks Agency has set aside Rp 10 billion (US$1.09 million) for the project, which commenced in May.

So far, only the sidewalks in front of the hotel, the Japan Embassy and the Ministry of Religious Affairs have been widened.

"We will move our fences back one meter," said Soehariyanto, president of Wisma Kosgoro management. "We are waiting for the agreement with the administration to be signed."

Building managements along the three-kilometer thoroughfare have been asked to sacrifice part of their land for the sidewalk and to remove their fences.

"Are the administration and police ready to protect the area (if we don't have fences)?" asked Soehariyanto.

John Robert of the management of Surya building, located next to the United Nations (UN) office, concurred. "The East Timor Embassy is stationed in this building. We are responsible for its safety."

He said that even at present, the office was too open. "People at the bus stop in front of this office come here to use the toilet or to shelter from heavy rain," he said. "It will be worse without a fence."

Aside from security, limited space is another problem. Surya building, the UN office and Wisma Thamrin have only enough space in front of their buildings for one car to pass.

As a solution, the plants in front of Wisma Thamrin have been removed to make way for almost one meter more of pavement.

The idea of spacious pedestrian walkways surfaced in 1997 when Jakarta was under Governor Surjadi Soedirdja. It popped up again, without any follow-up, in 2002. Governor Sutiyoso pushed for its implementation at the end of 2003.

However, the targeted group -- the pedestrians -- seem to be unexcited about the project. "It would be better to widen the road instead of the pavement," said Mira, a 35-year-old employee.

Another woman, who preferred to remain anonymous, could not agree more, and added, "The road is more congested since the busway took one lane."

"It would be better to give the money to help the unemployed," said Andi, 42. "The sidewalks needed some improvement, but not something that extravagant. I think this project is more about prestige. People who work on Jl. Thamrin are the haves, and they don't walk that much."